Well, 2-1 in a tight and tense Test series may not add up to one hell of a beating but, strewth, Sheila, you can forgive millions of overjoyed Pommies for wallowing in victory after this most sensational of summers.

And many merry Merseysiders had the same idea as England headed for Ashes glory: "This is the only place to be," said William Gibbons, 21, from Walton, who was proudly clad in an England cricket shirt in ... Walkabout, the Aussie theme bar in Concert Square, Liverpool.

With that famous little urn in the bag, overjoyed fans belted out a re-working of Kum-Bay-Yah, using the words "Michael Vaughan's my Lord, Michael Vaughan!" and,, above the delirious din, William told me: "The atmosphere is unbelievable. This has to be the best sporting moment this country has seen since 1966 when England's football team won the World Cup."

Then, as other drinkers joined the party by singing "We're gonna be in the ECHO!" Michael Bell,, 20, from Bootle, added: "I was only two when we last won the Ashes and there have been times when I didn't think we'd ever regain them.

"It's great to be here to celebrate it, but I think some of the Aussies who work here are keeping their heads down tonight!"

Fifteen of the bar's 25 staff are Australian, but one of them, assistant manager Mark Hansen, told me: "Although I was born in Australia my parents are English and I'm the only Aussie in the family tree - I'm actually delighted that England have regained the Ashes after all these years, although one or two of my colleagues, understandably, aren't too happy!"

The celebrations began some time before the game ended, courtesy of Kevin Pietersen's electrifying innings of 158. Later, with the players off for bad light, the much-loved, retiring commentator Richie Benaud emerged onto the pitch - they thought it was all over. Then the umpires appeared to finally remove the stumps - it was now.

And so, at 6.15pm the partying could officially commence - "No, I'm not drinking XXXX," said Michael Bell, "But I am drinking Fosters!"

The noise got louder and then, up on the bar's 35 TV screens, words were uttered which millions of English cricket lovers never dared dream they would hear: "England were just too good for us," said the great Shane Warne - three times!

Pietersen was man of the match but the man of the series was the pride of Preston - and Lancashire Cricket Club - Andrew "Freddie" Flintoff. And a special cheer went up for him at Liverpool Cricket Club in Aigburth.

Among those delighted to be handing out the plaudits is veteran Liverpool and Lancashire servant David Dunkley, 65, grandson of none other than the legendary Jack Sharp, who captained Lancashire Cricket Club and played for England, as well as playing football for both Everton and England.

David, who lives just a Flintoff big hit away from the Aigburth ground, has been a member of the Liverpool club since 1960, and on Lancashire's committee for 26 years.

He says: "Andrew Flintoff is a cricketing icon and a great ambassador for the game. I've met him on dozens of occasions and he's not changed over the years. He's always been such a nice, pleasant person.

"About five years ago, he guested for Liverpool against Southport, and he's also played for Lancashire here a few times." And this most gifted of players is helping to inspire the next generation of cricketers, with David Dunkley explaining: "This summer we've seen up to 150 youngsters, aged between five and 15, coming here on Monday evenings for coaching, and that figure has risen in the last few years as the fortunes of the England cricket team have improved.

"In the past, kids would start kicking a football from an early age - now, a lot more youngsters want to play cricket."

The benefits of this fabulous, feel good summer, then, are already cascading down to countless cricket clubs across the country - including Liverpool, which celebrates its 200th birthday in 2007.

"There's been a real buzz around the place and we're going to be able to build on that," says David.

Back in Walkabout, hundreds of Merseysiders were drinking to that - and to the health of a team of WINNERS.

Football? Did someone say football? Who gives a XXXX about football right now?